


Knots

by Wanderlust14



Category: GreedFall (Video Game)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, mention of canon character death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-27
Updated: 2019-09-27
Packaged: 2020-10-29 08:35:38
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,203
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20793752
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wanderlust14/pseuds/Wanderlust14
Summary: Vasco has a question for De Sardet.





	Knots

Vasco was not sure why he was nervous. He loved De Sardet and his Tempest loved him back. After everything that happened, they were still together and he knew that De Sardet was the person he wanted to be with for the rest of his life. He looked down at his cup and took another sip, it was just challenging. While De Sardet was Seaborn, he grew up in the Congregation and he did not know a lot about the Naut culture. The Promising Ceremony was a simple one and would probably seem dull to him compared to what he was used to in Serene. Vasco enjoyed its simplicity and meaning, but he knew not everyone would and he did not want De Sardet to look down upon it. 

Vasco looked at the ceremonial blanket Dunncas had given De Sardet and snorted. He was being ridiculous; his Tempest was kind and a great diplomat. Even if he found the ceremony odd or quaint, he would not judge and he enjoyed learning about other cultures. Goodness knows, the man asked enough questions. If his Tempest only objected to the concept of the Promising Ceremony, they could always figure out something else, maybe even a Native or Congregation ceremony. He polished off his glass of wine and headed to the library. It was time to stop being a coward and just ask the man.

De Sardet was sitting there with a book in his hand and one of the resident mousers sleeping in his lap. The domestic picture warmed Vasco. He had never thought a small, cluttered library with a scruffy cat would feel so homely after growing up on ships, but he wanted this for the rest of his life. His Tempest looked up from his book, smiled and Vasco could not help but to kiss him. De Sardet had a great smile and though it took a while for it to return after the death of Constantin, that smile was still just as sweet. 

“Mmm,” De Sardet said, “You taste of wine.”

“I’ll get you a glass later. I need to talk to you about something first.”

“Oh?” De Sardet said, sitting up and disrupting the cat in his lap. The cat gave Vasco a dirty look as it huffed and stalked away. “What is it?”

Vasco sat down in the other chair and thought about how to frame this. “Have you ever heard of a Naut Promising Ceremony?”

“No, I haven’t. What is it?”

Vasco rubbed his chin, not quite able to meet De Sardet’s eyes. “It’s ceremony we do between two Nauts. Obviously, it is a promise that we make that…well promise to be each other’s partners for the rest of our lives, to be loyal, true, to honor the other until death.”

“It sounds like a marriage ceremony.”

“It is similar, but Theleme is not involved. The only requirement for the ceremony is being over the age of majority and consenting, and…well…it isn’t really about alliances or anything like that, just about to the people involved. Afterwards, we go to the Admiral, Port Master, or the Captain of the ship and record our names as family.”

“What is the actual ceremony like?”

“We wait a day following the agreement to do it and then we tie our hands together, say the vows, share a glass of wine, and then…consummate the promise.”

“Ah, so I take it there are no witnesses involved.”

“Maybe if you are doing it on the ship, but generally no.”

They were both quiet and then his Tempest asked gently, “Do you want to do this ceremony with me?”

Vasco nodded, “Yes, I would, but you should take some time to think on it. It is a big decision.”

De Sardet grabbed his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. “I want to marry you…or conduct this promise ceremony with you.”

“Are you sure? This is permanent, for the rest of our lives.” He desperately had to be sure De Sardet understood how serious this was. It was not just a whim and he had seen enough people do it on a whim and regret it immensely six months later. Their names would be recorded in each other’s personal files and forever connected as far as the Nauts were concerned. If something happened to him, his Tempest would get his salary for the rest of his life. It was as serious as any marriage, even if it did not involve a priest.

De Sardet gave him a fond smile and said, “I do understand that and yes, I am, I love you and I want to spend the rest of our lives together.” 

“I love you too.” 

De Sardet got out of his chair and sat on Vasco’s lap, “Then this time tomorrow, we will bind our hands and promise forever.”

Vasco wrapped his arms around De Sardet as tightly as he could and buried his face in De Sardet’s chest. “Alright, tomorrow it is.”

De Sardet kissed the top of his head and Vasco felt like his heart was going to burst. It was going to be a long 24 hours.

***

24 hours later, he found himself in their bedroom, in his finest uniform, with some new rope and the best bottle of wine he could afford. He had no doubt they had better wine in the cellar, but he wanted to do this for his Tempest and it was considered good luck to use a bottle bought just for the Ceremony. Everything was set up and he was just waiting for De Sardet to finish dressing. The man had been rather cross when he saw Vasco in his uniform and he was still in his house clothes. He thought De Sardet looked handsome enough just as he was, but the man believed in dressing for the occasion. 

“Are you almost ready my Tempest?”

“I would have been ready sooner if you told me to dress up.”

“You looked fine.”

“Oh yes, says the man who knows exactly how dashing he looks right now.”

Vasco smiled and adjusted his coat, he did look rather good. De Sardet finally emerged from his dressing room and Vasco took a moment to admired the man. He knew how to dress and he looked very handsome in the dark blue suit with gold trim. “You look wonderful.”

“As do you.” De Sardet said, “So what do we need to do?”

“Take off your gloves. I’m going to need your help for the binding.”

Slowly Vasco wrapped the ropes around their left hands and tied the complicated knots. He had a feeling this would have been a lot easier with someone who had been raised as a Naut assisting him, but De Sardet followed his instructions well enough and even with a few mistakes, their hands were firmly tied. He liked the look of it; the smooth ropes against their skin, their hands clutched together. For someone who should have been a pampered noble, De Sardet’s hands were calloused and scarred and he appreciated feeling those callouses against his own. 

“Now what?” De Sardet asked softly as he rubbed his thumb against Vasco’s.

Vasco held up the glass of wine with his other hand. He looked into De Sardet’s eyes as he vowed, “Florian De Sardet, my Tempest, I take you to be my partner, I promise to be loyal and true to you, for the rest of my life. I promise to honor you, to be faithful, to support you in both troubled waters and when the winds are fair. I promise to love you forever more. Even if the entire sea was between us, I promise nothing will ever truly separate us for you are the Captain of my heart and from this day forward, we will be one.”

De Sardet’s cheeks were flushed, “Is that the vow we are supposed to say?”

“Yes, though, you can adjust it as you wish.”

Vasco then whispered the words to De Sardet and De Sardet repeated them. “Captain Vasco, I take you to be my partner. I promise to be loyal and true to you for the rest of my life. I promise to honor you, to be faithful, to support you in both good times and bad, in sickness and health. I promise to love you forever more. Even if the entire sea and the entire continent was between us, I promise nothing will ever truly separate us for you are the Captain of my heart and from this day forward, we will be one.”

Vasco held the cup to De Sardet’s lips, “With this wine, I promise you the rest of my life.”

De Sardet drank and then took the cup from Vasco, “With this wine, I promise you the rest of my life.”

Vasco drank deeply from the cup and then leaned forward and kissed De Sardet, tasting the fine wine from his lips. After a few moments, he finally pulled away, “Now we need to consummate the promise.” 

His Tempest gave him a saucy smile and reached for the ropes but Vasco quickly covered the knots. “We are supposed to consummate while still tied together.”

De Sardet shot him a crossed look, “Well that is going to be tricky since we are both still in our finest clothes.”

Vasco smiled, “We’ve had sex half-dressed before, I remember a few rather fun times.”

“Oh yes, those were excellent, but we were not tied together then.” De Sardet shook his head, but then laughed, “Very well, but let’s try to avoid ruining our clothes, I need to be able to look my valet in the eye tomorrow.”

***

Their hands were still bound as De Sardet held him. He was grateful De Sardet was pretending he hadn’t noticed the tears. He didn’t normally get so emotional during sex, but this was the first time of the rest of their lives. He had wanted this moment for so long. He listened to De Sardet’s steady heartbeat and when he finally felt less wobbly, he pulled on the rope and the knots quickly unraveled. 

He looked at his Tempest, his life partner, and could not resist reciting a poem, “Love is not love, Which alters when it alteration finds, Or bends with the remover to remove: O no; it is an ever-fixed mark, That looks on tempests, and is never shaken; It is the star to every wandering bark, Whose worth’s unknown, although his height be taken. Love’s not Time’s fool, though rosy lips and cheeks, Within his bending sickle’s compass come; Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks, But bears it out even to the edge of doom.” 

His Tempest kissed him softly, “I should have known a poem was coming.”

Vasco smiled, “I was going to tell you that one when I proposed.”

De Sardet laughed, “I am pretty sure I proposed to you.”

“Well, I was intending on proposing to you, you just beat me to the punch.” Vasco said with a blush.

“It would have been a lovely proposal.” De Sardet said as he flexed his newly freed hand. 

Vasco sat up and then gave one of the ropes to De Sardet and wrapped the other one around his wrist, tying it. His Tempest looked at the rope, “Are we supposed to wear this now?”

“When you aren’t on the ship, you can. We don’t tend to wear it on the ship in case it gets caught on anything, but off the ship…you know. It is why we get a thin one so it can be worn under clothes.”

De Sardet draped the rope over his wrist and held it out to Vasco. He quickly tied a knot and smiled at the sight of De Sardet bare from the waist down, suit rumbled, and with the rope. He had never looked more handsome. “You need to learn your knots, Tempest. ‘All Nauts know all knots.’”

“Oh? Will we be tying each other up soon?”

Vasco paused at the words and decided he really liked the image they conjured. “We could if you are interested.”

De Sardet raised an eyebrow at that and said, “Well then, I guess I could learn a few.” He looked at the rope tied around his wrist, “What happens if it gets worn out?”

“We get new ones. The first one is the only one that needs the ceremony.” He got some water and mopped them both up. 

“So, is our official title partners, life partners, or would it be alright to call you my husband.” His Tempest asked. 

Vasco heart fluttered at the words, “As far as Theleme is concerned, we are not married and still living in sin, but the Nauts don’t particularly care. You can call me whatever you prefer.”

De Sardet smiled and kissed him, “Very well, my husband.”

Vasco blushed at the words and decided there was nothing else he preferred than being called his Tempest’s husband. “I like that.”

“I like that too.”

***

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU GOT MARRIED?”

Vasco turned around and fled back to the library. He loved De Sardet, but he was better at handling Kurt.

**Author's Note:**

> So my De Sardet actually does have a first name, Florian, but it will rarely be used. He hated the name growing up since it was too close to Flora and Flower and that with the mark was often mocked by the other children. While he is more over it now, he still does not go by it. The only reason Vasco actually knows his first name is it was on the passenger list of the ship manifest.  
Also the Sonnet is part of Shakespeare's Sonnet 116.


End file.
